CNET, a technology news outlet, has reportedly deleted thousands of older articles from its website in an effort to improve its Google Search ranking. In an internal memo, CNET explained that this “content pruning” signals to Google that their site is fresh and relevant, ultimately leading to higher placement in search results. The deleted articles are archived using the Wayback Machine, and authors are given advance notice. Red Ventures, the company that owns CNET, has applied a similar SEO strategy to its other outlets as well. While removing content is not a recommended SEO practice, Red Ventures plans to continue this process regularly.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/8/9/23826342/cnet-content-pruning-deleting-articles-google-seo